But I confess I had been thinking about the utilization/reuse of ocean plastics as a relatively niche concept—something more focused on awareness raising than putting a real dent in the amount of trash in our seas.

Now it's important to note that NextWave is focused more on "ocean-bound" plastics than on plastics already in our oceans. That means diverting plastics from rivers and coastlines in designated priority areas. But if we do eventually bring technologies for cleaning the ocean itself to scale, then initiatives like this will play an important role in laying the groundwork for market demand for recycled ocean plastic too.